In the future
by diggingupbones
Summary: “Bones, is that you?” A familiar voice asked me, as a hand gently touched my shoulder. I turned around from the produce I was looking at, and saw my old friend and partner standing in front of me with a huge smile on his face. It had been fifteen years..


**I do not own Bones. I do not own any of the charters except Riley. I do not own anything except part of this story. There are some small parts I took from the past episodes. WARNING: SANTA IN THE SLUSH SPOILERS. I also got this idea after hearing this crazy song on the radio. And as I was listening this idea came to me. Some of it is based on the song, and other parts are just things that just came to me. I hope you enjoy!**

**This story is dedicated to my two crazy Bones obsessed fans, Erica and Mal. Love ya girls! Let me know what you think of this story! Haha. **

**A/N: Hey thank you everyone who noticed my mistake of Parker's age! I can't believe I got the age that far off. Opps Hopefully the story is more accurate now.. Lol. Thanks again! **

"Bones, there's something I wanted to tell you. The FBI offered me a job in Maine. It's a safe and well paid job, so I accepted. I'm sorry, but we will no longer be partners." Booth explained to me.

**Fifteen years later, on Christmas Eve at the local supermarket at 11:03 p.m. **

"Bones, is that you?" A familiar voice asked me, as a hand gently touched my shoulder. I turned around from the produce I was looking at, and saw my old friend and partner standing in front of me with a huge smile on his face. It had been fifteen years since I last saw him, and thirteen since we last spoken.

"Booth! What are you doing here?" I asked surprised.

"Well, Parker usually comes to visit me, but this year he had something going on and asked me to come instead." Booth explained. "How are you doing? It's been so long…" Booth's voice wandered off, as he tried to think of the last him and his partner talked. Yes, partner. Although they no longer worked together, Booth couldn't find himself to say "ex partner." It just didn't sound right to him.

"I'm doing fine." I responded, still shocked to see my old partner standing in front of me.

Booth and I talked lightly while I rang up my groceries. Walking outside in the chilly windy weather we both stood closer to each other for warmth as we talked in front of my car.

"Hey Bones, why don't we get inside your nice warm car and talk instead of standing out in the freezing snow." Booth said, pointing to my car.

I laughed and threw the groceries bags in the back seat and slid into the driver seat next to Booth, whom sat in the passenger seat.

"This doesn't seem right." I said.

Booth looked puzzled. "What do you mean?"

"Well, it wasn't often that you sat in the passenger seat and I was in the driver seat." I said, laughing at all the moments we had bickering over who should drive. I hardly ever won.

Booth laughed. "Well if you want, we can switch seats." He teased.

"How are the squints doing?" Booth asked.

"Their all fine." I said.

"The last time I seen the two squint love birds, they weren't married yet. Did Hodgins and Angela ever get married?" Booth asked, wondering if the young couple was ever able to convince Angela's husband from Fiji to divorce her so she could marry Hodgins.

"Yeah, and they have two kids. Emma is three and little Jack is five months." I responded. "How old is Parker now?" The last time I seen his kid he was six and a half years old.

"He'stwentyone years old, if you can believe that." Booth said, amazed at his own son's age. "He grew up to fast. He's interested in Science, and is going to college to be a Forensic Scientist." Booth said.

"Parker? Into Forensic Science?" I asked shocked.

"Yeah, he reminds me a lot of Zack with all his weird knowledge." Booth commented. "How is Zack, Bones?" Booth asked, suddenly remembering the squint that drove him insane.

"I don't have much contact with Zack, so I can't say for sure. The last time I spoken with him, it was five years ago. He moved to North Carolina, and he teaches Forensic Anthropology at a local University. He seemed happy the last time we spoken."

"Gosh, Bones where does the time go? Here we are, Christmas Eve, fifteen years later. The last Christmas Eve we spent together, was under the mistletoe." Booth said chuckling. "And two years before that we were under lock down at the Jeffersonian." Booth said, as the memories flooded back to him.

The couple was quiet for a moment, each remembering the past Christmas Eve's they were with each other, sadness filled both of their hearts at the wonderful memories they had long forgotten. Booth finally broke the silence. "You know, I had asked Caroline to try to get you to kiss me under the mistletoe."

"You had her blackmail me?" I asked, laughing. "Why didn't you just kiss me?"

"I wanted to kiss you so bad, but was too afraid of what you would say or do. So I asked her to make it sound like it was all her idea." Booth explained. "You never knew how much I really liked you Bones. And that was part of the reason I took that job. I gave up on you. I didn't think you were interested in me in that type of way, and I couldn't deal with messing with my emotions daily." Booth confessed.

"Booth, I did like you. But I didn't want to end our partnership if things went bad, so I pushed you away." I said silence loomed in the air for a moment.

"I got married several years back. I had thought about inviting you to the wedding, but I didn't think you would want to come since you don't exactly like weddings." Booth said nervously, breaking the silence.

"Who did you get married to?" I asked, surprised that he was married. I don't know why I was surprised for. Booth always said he wanted to get married. I guess time just stood still for me.

"A nice women name Beth. After we had our daughter, she convinced me to retire from the FBI. She thought it was too dangerous of a job, and she wanted me to be around to see Elizabeth grow up." Booth said.

Sadness gripped my heart. It was then I realized that I had secretly hoped that Booth would come back, and we would be partners again. That I could kick my new partner whom I didn't like much to the curb and things would be back to normal. But hearing Booth say he retired from the FBI had just slammed that door shut. Sure, I didn't dwell on it. I didn't even think much of Booth unless I came across an old picture that was tucked away somewhere or Angela brought him up. But now that he was retired, our partnership was officially over. There was never any going back to the "good old days".

Booth looked at the car clock. "Wow, Bones it's almost 12:30 I better get going. Parker will wonder where I am." Booth said as he started to open my car door. "It was nice seeing you again Bones." Booth said as he started to get out of the car. But then he stopped and looked at me and flashed me a charm smile as he reached over the seat and gently kissed my cheek. Shutting the door firmly, he only turned around once and gave a small wave. Waving back, I waited until he got into his truck and drove away before I burst into tears. Our lives could have been prefect together, if I hadn't pushed him away. He didn't know I liked him, although I clearly knew he did. If only I hadn't been a coward, then maybe, just maybe it would have been different. When would I see Booth again? Would it be another fifteen years down the road, or possibly never again? Sitting the abandoned parking lot, with small tears rolling down my face I thought about our last Christmas Eve together. The kiss, the tree him and Parker brought to the jail. Looking at my clock, I realized it was about the time he called fifteen years ago and I was just talking sip of my Dad's mysterious drink mix. Times had changed, but I never realized it until now, just how much until there I was sitting in a dark parking lot alone on Christmas Eve. Alone. Again. I didn't want to be alone, I was alone for so many years, but then Booth came along. And then he left, leaving me alone again. And it wasn't until we bumped into each other that I realized just how alone I really was in my small world or writing and work. I sobbed bitter tears, alone in my car, my head on the steering wheel.

I opened my eyes, tears streaming down my face. My breath was hard to catch, as if I had just been crying hard. I then realized it was a dream, and in my dream I had been crying. I grabbed my cell phone and dialed the number I knew from memory.

"Hmho?" I heard a groggy voice answer.

Unable to say what I wanted to say I started to sob into the phone.

"Who is that?" Booth asked, slightly more awake now.

"Booth…" I managed to say after a moment.

"Bones is that you?"

Looking at my clock, sobbing I realized how late it was and how foolish I would be to say I called him, crying in the middle of the night just to hear his voice. The dream I had of Booth and I down the road terrified me. I didn't want to be alone again, and I knew I would eventually be alone again. So instead of explaining, I just hung up the phone. He was half asleep; he would hopefully just fall back asleep and not remember in the morning.

I threw back my covers, and stumbled into the kitchen to make myself some tea. I had stopped crying, but my breathing was still shaky and I hated that. Once the tea was finished, I sat on my couch and sipped it, deep in though. I loved Booth, and I know he loved me. Was the dream I just had almost a vision of us apart from each other? I didn't exactly want to find out. But I don't know what else to do. I don't even know how I could ever face Booth again after the way I called him, blubbering. A loud knocking on my door made me jump and come out of my deep thoughts. It must be Booth. Deciding it would be better if he didn't know I was awake, I quickly turned off the small reading lamp next to the couch and snuck into my bedroom without making a sound. Quietly I shut the bedroom door and crawled back under the cool covers. He would eventually give up, and leave. Finally the knocking stopped, and I signed a sigh of relief. But that relief didn't last long, a moment later I heard a soft knock on my bedroom door as he opened it.

"Bones? Are you awake?" Booth asked. Although, I'm sure he knew I was.

"Yeah." Was all I could say, my voice was starting to shake again after hearing his voice. Too hear him call me by my nickname that I once hated.

Booth walked over to the side of my bed, and took a seat next to me. I buried my face farther under the covers. _"How could I get rid of him?"_ I thought to myself.

"Bones, what's wrong?" Booth asked his soft voice full of concern as he gently touched my shoulder. That touch, brought me back to my dream when he gently touched my shoulder in the store. Why did he have to go and touch me for? I started to violently sob, unable to control my emotions. "_Why can't he just go?" "Please just go Booth." I thought to myself." _

"Booth please lea…" I started to say and then I stopped myself. There was no way I was going to let that dream become reality for me.

"Booth, I love you." I said quietly, my face deep down under the blankets still.

"I can't hear you with the covers over your face Bones." Booth said, pulling them away from my face. "Now, what's wrong?" He asked gently.

"I said that I loved you." I said, clearly looking directly into his soft brown eyes. "And I had a dream tonight that scared me. I don't want you to leave me Booth." I said, as more tears started to fall freely down my face.

Booth turned on the small lamp next to my bed. This obviously meant he would be staying for a while. And I'm glad. I would be happy if he never left.

"Bones, why would I ever leave you?" Booth asked.

"You will Booth. You will get transferred to another agency that's out of state. We won't talk for fifteen years and then when we do it's too late. You're married and you have a daughter, and Parker – a family." I sobbed. "And you'll retire from the FBI because your wife Beth wants you too and we will meet and it will all be too late Booth!" I rambled on; although from the look of confusion in his eye I knew I would have some explaining to do.

"Bones, it was a dream. Just a silly dream and you should know that I would never just get up and leave you and the squints. You guys are my family. I could never just leave you." Booth said.

"Yes you could Booth. Because your job means the world to you, and an actual family would mean more to you then us." I said, still worried and unsure.

"Temperance" Booth started to say, I looked up. Once had he called me by my first name. I knew what he had to say next was important. "No I couldn't. I could never leave you, I love you." Booth said.

I wanted to say something, but over flooded with emotions, I sat up in bed and unlike our first mistletoe kiss, I wasn't nervous at all. As our lips parted I gently hugged him, and whispered back to Booth. "I love you, more than you will ever know Booth."

**15 years later**

"Mom, so you're saying that when I feel that the guy I like is special, I shouldn't be afraid to show my feelings?" Riley asked me.

"Yes, look at your Father and I. If I hadn't spoken up about my actual feelings for him who knows what could have happened." I said back to my thirteen year old daughter.

"But mom, it _was_ just a dream." She pointed out.

"Yes, but you didn't hear what happened next. You see, a month later your dad got asked to take a very high paid job. He would still be able to live in the area, but he wouldn't ever be home. He would always be traveling. He told me that if it wasn't for me, he would have taken the job Riley. So even though I don't usually believe in dreams as being "visions" for the future, I do believe that this one carried its meaning.

Riley looked at me, her dark brown eyes wide in amazement of what I had just told her. "Wow Mom, you never told me anything so incredible before."

"Love is incredible, I always thought I would never want to get married – and I never wanted kids either. But when you actually meet that special person, everything changes. Look at me now sweetie." I said laughing. "I am a married woman, and I am a mother of two kids."

Riley laughed. "I never would have pictured you to be so against marriage and having kids."

"Love in incredible sweetie, it can change people." I said, smiling as I saw Booth walk though the front door and our son Parker come in behind him, carrying a bag pack. It was his turn to stay at our house for the week. "Someday, you'll know when you meet someone special. "And when you do find that someone, go for it and never look back." I said, never taking my eyes off my husband.

**Just like you, I enjoy reviews! Good or bad, so please tell me what you thought! Thank you very much! And thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it for you! -Kay**


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